The Will to Think
What was immediately striking was the amount of time he spent as a youth exercising his mind. This was mostly driven by two factors: his upbringing and a deep emotional incentive to visualize.
His father not only understood the importance of bandwidth but saw mental acuity as a skill to be trained.
“the training he gave me must have been helpful. It comprised all sorts of exercises, such as guessing one another’s thoughts, discovering the defects of some form or expression, repeating long sentences or performing mental calculations. These daily lessons were intended to strengthen memory and reason and especially to develop the critical sense, and were undoubtedly very beneficial.""
However, it seems that the primary driver of his mental development was fear. He would experience realistic hallucinations of terrible memories and in order to calm himself he had to continuously conjure up images.
“To free myself of these tormenting appearances, I tried to concentrate my mind on something else I had seen, an in this way I would often obtain temporary relief; but in order to get it I had to conjure continuously new images…As I performed these mental operations for the second or third time, in order to chase the appearances from my vision, the remedy gradually lost all its force. Then I instinctively commenced to make excursions beyond the limits of the small world of which I had knowledge, and I saw new scenes. These were at first very blurred and indistinct, and would flit away when I tried to concentrate my attention upon them, but by and by I succeeded in fixing them; they gained in strength and distinctness and finally assumed the concreteness of real things. I soon discovered that my best comfort was attained if I simply went on in my vision farther and farther, getting new impressions all the time, and so I began to travle—of course, in my mind. Every night (an sometimes during the day), when alone, I would start on my journeys — see new places, cities and countries—live there, meet people and make friendships and acquaintances and, however unbelievable, it is a fact that they were just as dear to me as those in actual life and not a bit less intense in their manifestations. This I did constantly until I was about 17 years old when my thoughts turned seriously to invention. Then I observed to my delight that I could visualize with the greatest facility. I needed no models, drawings or experiments. I could picture them all as real in my mind.”
I think that just as people go to the gym to build muscles now, there will eventually be the equivalent of a dedicated “mental” gym for individuals who wish to improve their mind’s bandwidth.
Maintenance
It’s clear that he was very attentive to the maintenance of his mind and body.
“The truth about this is that we need stimulants to do our best work under present living conditions, and that we must exercise moderation and control our appetites and inclinations in every direction. This is what I have been doing for many years, in this way maintaining myself young in body and mind”
Musk has mentioned this idea of process isolation, where one can fully control one’s attention. I think that most people are deprived of deep, internal focus because of the many distractions that are readily-accessible.
“The pressure of occupation and the incessant stream of impressions pouring into our consciousness through all the gateways of knowledge make modern existence hazardous in many ways”
Information hygiene is important.
quotes
“I am credited with being one of the hardest workers and perhaps I am, if thought is the equivalent of labor, for I have devoted to it almost all of my waking hours. But if work is interpreted to be a definite performance in a specified time according to a rigid rule, then I may be the worst of idlers. Every effort under compulsion demands a sacrifice of life-energy. I never paid such a price”
“{his father} was a very erudite man, a veritable natural philosopher, poet and writer and his sermons were said to be as eloquent as those of Abraham a Sancta Clara. He had a prodigious memory and frequently recited at length from works in several languages. he often remarked playfully that if some of the classics were lost he could restore them. ”
“Although I must trace to my mother’s influence whatever inventiveness I possess, the training he gave me must have been helpful. It comprised all sorts of exercises, such as guessing one another’s thoughts, discovering the defects of some form or expression, repeating long sentences or performing mental calculations. These daily lessons were intended to strengthen memory and reason and expecially to develop the critical sense, and were undoubtedly very beneficial.”
“My mother descended from one of the oldest families in the country and a line of inventors. Both her father and grandfather originated numerous implements for household, agricultural and other uses.”
“To free myself of these tormenting appearances, I tried to concentrate my mind on something else I had seen, an in this way I would often obtain temporary relief; but in order to get it I had to conjure continuously new images…As I performed these mental operations for the second or third time, in order to chase the appearances from my vision, the remedy gradually lost all its force. Then I instinctively commenced to make excursions beyond the limits of the small world of which I had knowledge, and I saw new scenes. These were at first very blurred and indistinct, and would flit away when I tried to concentrate my attention upon them, but by and by I succeeded in fixing them; they gained in strength and distinctness and finally assumed the concreteness of real things. I soon discovered that my best comfort was attained if I simply went on in my vision farther and farther, getting new impressions all the time, and so I began to travle—of course, in my mind. Every night (an sometimes during the day), when alone, I would start on my journeys — see new places, cities and countries—live there, meet people and make friendships and acquaintances and, however unbelievable, it is a fact that they were just as dear to me as those in actual life and not a bit less intense in their manifestations. This I did constantly until I was about 17 years old when my thoughts turned seriously to invention. Then I observed to my delight that I could visualize with the greatest facility. I needed no models, drawings or experiments. I could picture them all as areal in my mind.”
“My method is different. I do not rush into actual work. When I get an idea I start at once building it up in my imagination. I change the construction, make improvements and operate the device in my mind.”
“Of all things I liked books the best. My father had a large library and wheenver I could manage I tried to satisfy my passion for reading. He did not permit it and would fly into a rage when he caught me in the act.”
“On one occasion I came across a novel entitled Abafi (the son of aba), a serbian translation of a well known hungarian writer, josika. This work somehow awakened my dormant powers of will and I began to practice self-control”
“At first my resolutions faded like snow in April, but in a little while I conquered my weakness and felt a pleasure I never knew before — that of doing as I willed. In the course of time this vigorous mental exercise became second nature. At the outset my wishes had to be subdued but gradually desire and will grew to be identical.”
“During another period I smoked excessively, threatening to ruin my health. Then my will asserted itself and I not only stopped but destroyed all inclination”
“Long ago I suffered from heart trouble until I discovered that it was due to the innocent cup of coffee I consumed every morning. I discontinued at once, although I confess it was not an easy task. In this way I checekd and bridled other habits and passions and have not only preserved my life but derived an immense amount of satisfaction from what most men would consider privation and sacrifice.”
“The pressure of occupation and the incessant stream of impressions pouring into our consciousness through all the gateways of knowledge make modern existence hazardous in many ways”
“The truth about this is that we need stimulants to do our best work under present living conditions, and that we must exercise moderation and control our appetites and inclinations in every direction. This is what I have been doing for many years, in this way maintaining myself young in body and mind”
“After that, I believe, I undertook to take apart and assemble the clocks of my grandfather. In the former operation I was always successful but often failed in the latter.”
“And now I will tell of one of my feats with this antique implement of war {sling} which will strain to the utmost the credulity of the reader. I was practicing while walking with my uncle along the river. The sun was setting, the trout were playful and from time to time one would shoot up into the air, its glistening body sharply defined against a projecting rock beyond. Of course any boy might habve hit a fish under these propitious conditions, but I undertook a much more difficult taks and I foretold to my uncle, to the minutest detail, what I inteneded doing. I was to hurl a stone to meet the fish, press its body against the rock, and cut it in two. It was no sooner said than done. My uncle looked at me almost scared out of his wits and exclaimed “Vade retro Satanas!” and it was a few days before he spoke to me again.”
“…often won the Professor’s praise for rapid calculation. This was due to my acquired facility of visualizing the figures and performing the operations, not in the usual intuitive manner, but as in actual life. Up to a certain degree of complexity it was absolutely the same to me wheterh I wrote the symbols on the board or conjured them before my mental vision.”
“During this period I was permitted to read constantly, obtaining books from the Public library which had been neglected and entrusted to me for classification of the works and preparation of the catalogues.”
“I had a veritable mania for finishing whatever I began, which often got me into difficulties. On one occasion I started to read the works of Voltaire when I learned, to my dismay, that there were close to one hundred large volumes in small print which that monster had written while drinking 72 cups of black coffee per diem. It had to be done, but when I laid aside the last book I was very glad, and said, “Never more!”